Monday, October 22, 2012

MURFREESBORO — Mix a dollop of
face paint, a handful of cupcake sprinkles and some pumpkin-seed-covered
giggles in a sandbox, then let it all bake in a sunny fall afternoon.

That's
the recipe for Project Help's Family Fall Festival every year at MTSU, and the
result is always delicious — and sometimes hilarious.

Families,
friends, teachers, neighbors and community supporters turned out Thursday to
spend the afternoon with the kids of Project Help, Rutherford County’s only
community- and center-based program serving very young children, including
those with special needs.

The
festival, enhanced by the breezy October blue skies, welcomed dozens of
visitors with snacks, games and the MTSU Dairy's always-crowd-pleasing
chocolate milk. Several members of the Blue Raider football team and coaches
took a break from practice to carve pumpkins, and Brad Hopkins, a former
Tennessee Titan and current sports radio host, stopped by for a quick visit
with the Project Help kids, too.

"The
goal is to provide our children and their families with an afternoon filled
with free, fun and fabulous fall festivities," said Director Susan
Waldrop. "The weather's cooperated beautifully and we've all been having a
great time!"

Founded
in 1983, the nonprofit Project Help provides free early-intervention and
family-support services to toddlers with disabilities and developmental delays.
It currently serves 68 children, including 45 with special needs.

Project
Help’s progressive preschool serves children from 15 months to 3 years old. The
new “Project Help Prep” for children ranging from 3 years old to kindergarten
currently offers a half-day, tuition-only program four days a week.

The
center’s staff, which includes more than 150 student volunteers each semester,
works with parents through family-support programs that include workshops, one-to-one
interactions and informal training seminars.

For
more details about Project Help and its services, visit www.mtsu.edu/ProjectHelp.

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MTSU is committed to developing a community devoted to learning,
growth and service. We hold these values dear, and there’s a simple phrase that
conveys them:“I am True Blue.” Learn
more at www.mtsu.edu/trueblue. For MTSU news anytime, visit www.MTSUNews.com.